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Science Market Update

Construction is done on the $190 million, seven-story Knight Cancer Research Building (KCRB), and on August 20 researchers and staff began moving in. The KCRB is part of the large Knight Cancer Institute, which includes research as well as treatment facilities. The 320,000 square foot building on South Moody Avenue will allow for the recruiting of 250 cancer researchers and physicians.

For life science researchers, having easy access to data and information is essential. They can use this data to research diseases and further personal research, benefiting other researchers and patients. Oregon Health and Science University in Portland recently received a five-year grant of $15 million from the National Institutes of Health to establish a first-of-its-kind database to contain pediatric cancer and rare disease research. (Image courtesy of I, Cacophony via Wikimedia Commons)

The Knight Cancer Institute at Oregon Health and Science University, a world-leader in cancer research, recently accomplished raising $1 billion in funding to help support the groundbreaking life science research being conducted at the center.

Tuberculosis is the number one cause of death by infectious disease around the world. In 2014, this contagious bacterial infection was responsible for 1.5 million deaths worldwide. Although the disease is treatable and curable, it still persists as a global health problem that scientists continue to study, to develop new and improved treatments.

West Nile Virus is a debilitating disease that is spread by the bite of an infected mosquito. Much like victims of malaria, and other mosquito-born pathogens, those affected by West Nile virus are at risk for serious illness or even death.

HIV and AIDS have been a conspicuous concern worldwide for several decades now; research into its treatment regularly gains national attention and benefits from billions of dollars in research funding. What many people may not realize, however, is that simian immunodeficiency virus, (or SIV, a nonhuman primate form of HIV that causes AIDS in monkeys) may hold the keys to unlocking the mysteries of how HIV can be treated in humans.

Once a stigmatized disease, AIDS is now a primary focus for many researchers seeking to address deadly health problems and potentially save the lives of millions of men, women and children. AIDS killed 1.5 million people worldwide last year, a staggering number that has drawn the attention of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Addressing this disease is a priority for the Gates Foundation, as is evidenced by all the work they have done to select and fund promising research. Fortunately, scientists all over the world are searching for innovative solutions to curing this disease. The Gates Foundation has found one likely contender for a vaccine that may also work as a cure in the work of a science researcher at Oregon Health and Science University.

Oregon Health and Science University along with two other public Oregon schools recently opened a new life sciences building, the state’s largest academic building, on Portland’s South Waterfront. The project received $110 million in life science funding from taxpayers, $92 million in funding from Oregon Health and Science University institutional funding, $83 million from OHSU philanthropy and $10 million from the TriMet regional mass transit agency. The riverfront property for the new research building was donated by the Schnitzer family to help OHSU increase its campus presence in Portland.

This month the Knight Cancer Institute at Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) received a $10 million gift from Columbia Sportswear President and Chief Executive Officer Tim Boyle to recruit and support the next generation of cancer researchers.